The Princess and the Frog
by StrawberryBubble
Summary: Told completely from Prince Naveen's point of view. Chapter 6 now up! Rating MAY change to T due to the changed events in later chapters. *no longer being updated*
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Hey! I've been skimming through the stories in this category (just saw the movie about a week ago and fell in love :D) and noticed there wasn't any (that I saw, at least, I could have missed one) told from completely Prince Naveen's point of view. So, I thought I might try to do that…I'm just trying it out as of now as I've never written a first person fanfic before, but I've been wanting to ever since I saw the movie…so…without further introduction I'm pretty sure no one reads **_**anyway**_**…enjoy! **

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own 'The Princess and the Frog' or any of its characters.. All things in this story (besides what I have made up to fill in scenes) belong to the rightful owner. **

Chapter One

**Welcome Prince Naveen! **The banners were the first thing I saw as I stepped off the yacht and, along with the crowd of people flashing photos of me and girls excitedly trying to get my attention—I could very easily tell I was going to like this place. It was…New Orleans, yes! That was where I was. It didn't very much matter; I was only here for one thing and one thing alone: to go to Charlotte La Bouff's masquerade ball. If I were to be able to marry her, all my troubles would be over! Money troubles, anyway. Hah! If anyone were to here that, they would look at me like I was crazy. A prince with no money? Unheard of!

Oh, but it was so true…my mother and father had cut me off, telling me I was asking for too many things! Isn't that what money is supposed to be used for, though? Buying things? How was I supposed to know they were going to pull the whole you-need-to-be-grateful-for-what-you-have lesson for me to learn! This was a ridiculous way to do it.

I fidgeted in my clothes; I hated the shirt I was supposed to wear. Prince or not a prince, I was going to have fun tonight. I took off the uncomfortable thing to reveal my unimportant looking shirt, vest, and tie, and tossed my crown to the side, turning around as my butler Lawrence came up behind me. I grabbed my ukulele from the bag on his back, ignoring his small exclaim of surprise. He was fine—the bags were hardly heavy at all!

I practically jumped down the stairs to meet the girls at the bottom, crossing my legs and posing, all while playing the instrument, and smiled at them before my attention was seized by a marching jazz band, well, _marching _down the street.

I hoped off on one leg, very aware that the girls followed me, all sighing loudly in affection. Oh yes, I was definitely liking New Orleans so far! They fell away as I tagged along the end of the jazz players, calmly meandering down the streets, strumming my ukulele and already feeling more peaceful than I had in a while. It wasn't at all easy being a prince; sure everything was done for me, but I still had to live up to an image I didn't quite want to yet. That being settled down, married, and in other words, _boring. _Give up trying to woo all of the beautiful woman in the world, for one I had to be with for the rest of my life? It seemed incredibly silly.

But when hardly anyone recognized you, as they wouldn't in what I was currently wearing, you had all the more fun. You could relax and actually have a good time, and of course not have to worry for a while about _marrying _anyone, even with the ball being hours away where, if I was lucky, that would be exactly what was taking place.

I strolled along and finally paused momentarily in front of a café. A girl in a very vivid yellow dress, about my age, had taken my attention (and my breath) away. See, this is why I considered marrying someone right now being unnecessary! I was at my best in life right now, why waste that by settling down now? I stepped up onto the curb and leaned back so she would see me, taking my hat off and pressing it to my chest.

"Hmmph," She rolled her eyes and turned away from me.

"Eh!" _There will be others!_ I shrugged and placed my hat back on my head, continuing along. I glanced behind me after walking a few more paces. Now I had to set into action the plan of avoiding Lawrence at all cost…

Twenty minutes into my stay and I was already in love with this place. I had been having a great time with three people who'd stayed back from the marching band, and, after five minutes or so of playing along with them, I had noticed a large crowd had gathered around us, clapping and cheering and moving to the beat. It was like a little party in itself, and I was pretty sure this was better than any masquerade I was going to. Eventually, the little boy in a red hat who had been selling papers (which, by the way, had my arrival on the front page, of course) and who I had noticed had been giving the crowd very longing glances had finally stopped and joined in.

"Oh, yes!" I laughed encouragingly at him as he began to dance. He was actually pretty good! He matched perfectly with the rhythm and was doing better than I had ever seen, especially at the usual formal parties I went to. Nobody really _danced _there, anyway; it was more like…waltzing! "Achedanza!" I glanced behind me and once again tipped my hat to the girls who had gathered there, spinning off back into the middle of the circle.

Someone poked their way through the crowd, and I resisted rolling my eyes at them as I recognized who it was.

"Sire!" Lawrence exclaimed, sounding quite out of breath and looking it, as well. He was still carrying around my bags—how thoughtful of him! "I've been looking for you _everywhere!_"

"Oh, what a coincidence, Lawrence," I said, not ceasing to play my instrument, still hoping to continue this good time. "I have been _avoiding _you everywhere!" I took off my hat and tipped back towards him and then moved off to the opposite side of the circle.

Lawrence looked at me, panicked. "We're going to be late for the masquerade—"

"Listen, Lawrence, listen!" I smiled not even knowing I'd interrupted him until a second after I'd done it. He'd been talking? "Oh, it's jazz, it's jazz music!" I spun briefly in bliss. "It was born here!" I loved music dearly; anyone who had known me longer than five seconds could easily tell that. I turned back towards my butler, but my attention wasn't on him any longer. I rested my elbow on his back and leaned towards the woman behind him. "It is beautiful, no?" I asked, smiling as they all sighed dreamily and giggled.

"No," Lawrence groaned in irritation, and I straightened up, tossing my guitar to the little boy, who grinned.

"Oh, dance with me, fat man!" I laughed, grabbing Lawrence by his shirt, causing him to drop all the bags, and pulled him into the circle. "Stay loose, Lawrence!"

"We're supposed to be at La Bouff's estate by now…" Lawrence protested, and I sighed. "Yes, yes, yes, but first—" I released him and turned to the crowd, my arms up. "I buy everyone here a drink!"

The people cheered, and then Lawrence glared at me. "With _what?_" He asked, and I sighed, turning to him. "At this point," he continued, "you have two choices. Woo and marry a rich young lady, or get—a—job!" He ended with a shout, pointing at a man on the other side of the street that was shoveling manure out of the road.

"Ugh," I muttered in distaste, grimacing. Then I shrugged. "All right, fine. But first, we dance!" I wasn't going to give up this fun so easily! I grabbed Lawrence again and spun him back into the circle, making him unwillingly dance. "For someone who cannot see his feet, you are very light on them!" I japed, spinning him once more and releasing him. He did not stop until he tripped and fell, ran into a jazz player's tuba, and hit the wall on the other side, his head stuck fast in the instrument.

"Hah! It's perfect!" I exclaimed, going over to his staggering form and placing a hand on him to stop him from falling over. "You finally got into the music!" I laughed as he muttered something inaudible. "Do you get my joke?" I asked, grabbing onto the mouthpiece of the thing and speaking into it. "Because your head, it's—it's in the tuba."

"Get me out!" Lawrence demanded, and I smiled as another man from the crowd came over to help us. "All right, all right, hold on," I said, and grabbed his feet while the other man pulled on the tuba. We both tugged very hard—and finally he came free! His weight barreled into me and we tumbled onto the sidewalk, me laughing and him sputtering in embarrassment.

"How _degrading_!" Lawrence shouted, scrambling up and glaring down at me as I placed my fallen hat back on my head. "I've never been so humiliated…" he trailed off, and I stopped laughing as I realized there was someone in front of us as his shadow fell across us, and I looked up. "Hello?"

"Gentlemen!" The man smirked, holding out his cane for me. "Enchantée."

I took it and stood, briefly looking the man over, noticing that, just by his dark purple clothing, he gave off a sense of mysteriousness. He took off his hat, which was marked with a skull and crossbones and a purple feather, and spun it on his finger. "A tip of the hat from Dr. Facilier." He said, tucking it under his arm and pulling out a purple card. Boy did this guy like that color! "How ya'll doin'?" He gave the card to me.

I glanced down at it, already interested. "Tarot readings," I read aloud, "charms, potions…dreams made real. Achedanza…"

Dr. Facilier placed a hand on my shoulder and slowly led me down the sidewalk. "Were I a betting man, and I'm _not_, I stay away from games of chance…" He turned the corner in an alleyway, and I did as well, ignoring Lawrence's cry of, "Sire!"

"I'd wager," Dr. Facilier continued, taking my palm as we walked, "that I'm in the company of visiting royalty!" He paused, got in front of me, and bowed. I turned to Lawrence, too intrigued to notice how creepy the setting around me had become. "Lawrence, Lawrence!" I exclaimed, pointing to my hand. "This _remarkable _gentleman has just read my palm."

I looked back up at the man with the cane as Lawrence stepped around him suspiciously. "Or this morning's newspaper…" he murmured, but I ignored him. That is, I _tried _to, until he grabbed me and jerked me around, whispering, "Sire, this chap is obviously a charlatan. I suggest we move on to a less—"

"Don't you disrespect me, little man!" Dr. Facilier suddenly said, pointing at Lawrence and leaning towards him. I patted my butler on the shoulder, amused.

"_Don't you derogate, or deride._" Dr. Facilier pointed his staff towards the sign reading **Dr. Facilier's Voodoo Emporium**, and the skulls at the bottom lit up into flames. "_You're in my world now, not your world._"

I leaned slightly on Lawrence shoulder, totally intrigued by this man.

"_And I've got friends on the other side._" Dr. Facilier smirked knowingly and gestured towards the front door, which ominously opened as he did so. I slightly jumped as voices repeated what he had just said—was there someone else in there?

Lawrence and I peered into the place, and then Dr. Facilier placed his hands on both our shoulders and led us inside. "That's just an echo, gentlemen." He explained. "Just a little somethin' we have here in Louisana; a little parlor trick. Don't worry…" He shoved us both hard into the room and shut the door.

"_Sit down at my table,_" He snapped his fingers and gestured towards the now lit up area towards the back, where a table with three chairs awaited. "_Put your minds at ease._"

I looked up as my hat suddenly lifted off my head and was placed on a skull object. Then the man pushed me towards the table.

"_If you relax it will enable me to do anything I please._"

I glanced back at him, still smiling, though it was obvious Lawrence was distrusting of him. Leave it to my butler to be suspicious of everyone!

"_I can read your future, and change it 'round some, too._" Dr. Facilier stepped up onto the platform the table was on and pushed me back into the chair. "_I'll look deep into your heart and soul—_" He turned and placed his staff below Lawrence's chin. "You do have a soul, don't you Lawrence?" He jumped up onto the table. "_Make your wildest dreams come true_."

He was suddenly behind both of us—at nearly the same time—holding out strange objects. "_I got voodoo, I got hoodoo, I got things I ain't even tried!_" He opened a box that shot out a mask of fire, and then slammed it shut again, tossing it back. "_And I got friends on the other side._"

I noticed his shadow move differently from him—and even push his chair in for him! And there was that 'echo' again—that definitely hadn't happened with anything else he'd said. I glanced around, at Lawrence, and then at the strange mask type objects that were hanging on the wall behind us, and finally back at the Shadow Man, who now had a deck of cards in his hand, playing around with them as if to show off he was skilled.

"_The cards, the cards, the cards will tell; the past, the present and the future as well._" He flipped them around some more. "_The cards, the cards, just take three._"

I unhesitatingly did so, and after a moment and a small nudge from me, Lawrence did too.

"_Take a little trip into the future with me._" Dr. Facilier smirked, and then spread out the cards in front of us, picking up the first one on my side. "_Now you, young man, are from across the sea…_" He moved the card down, which seemed to continue to get longer, and which had pictures of exactly what he was speaking of. "_You come from two long lines of royalty—_" He held out a shrunken head, which I moved away from, slightly disgusted. "I'm a royal myself, on my mother's side." The man continued. Did that mean that was his…? Ugh!

"_Your life style's high_," Dr. Facilier turned back to the cards, and they once again were of what he was saying. "_But your funds are low…you need to marry a little honey who's daddy got dough._"

He picked up the cards and looked at me. "Mon and Dad cut you off, huh, playboy?"

"Eh," I replied with a shrug. "Sad but true."

Dr. Facilier chucked slightly and shuffled the cards continuously as he talked. "Now ya'll gotta get hitched; but hitchin' ties you down! You just wanna be free, hop from place to place? But freedom—takes green!"

I obviously nodded, and then looked down at the cards he now flipped over to reveal dollar bills. "_It's the green, it's the green, it's the green you need!_" He threw the cards, which disappeared into thin air, and reached down to flip over my third card, which I was extremely happy about as I looked at it. Me—with money again! "_And when I look into your future it's the green that I see._"

I took the card and grinned, staring at it as if I thought that might make it suddenly come true. Were my parents going to write me back into my inheritance?

"_On you, little man, I don't wanna waste much time, you've been pushed around all your life._"

I glanced over as Dr. Facilier flipped over and changed Lawrence's cards around. "_You've been pushed around by your mother, your sister, and your brother. And if you was married…you'd be pushed around by your wife._"

I placed a hand over my mouth as I couldn't help but chuckle, and Lawrence glared at me. "_But in your future, the you I see…_" Dr. Facilier came behind Lawrence and picked up the last card, maneuvering it in a way I could not see what was on it. "_is exactly the man you always wanted to be._"

Lawrence's eyebrows raised, and he glanced over at me. "Won't you shake my hand?" Dr. Facilier suddenly asked, between the two chairs, holding out his hand. I leaned away, suddenly uncertain. Something about this man now gave me only one thought of _Get out of here, right now! _

"Come on, boys! Won't you shake the poor sinner's hand?"

I hesitated several moments more, then took a breath and shook his hand. "Yes…" the man said, smirking. The lights suddenly dimmed to darker colors, and he pulled away from us. I glanced down at my hand, confused, and then to where curtains had moved back to reveal several of the same masks that had been echoing him before—only a _lot _bigger.

"_Are you ready?_" Dr. Facilier cackled, and the masks echoed him. Two large snakes—where the heck did those come from?—suddenly wrapped around the chair I was in, pinning me to it. I struggled to no avail, raising my eyes back to the Shadow Man as he gestured to the largest of the masks, which opened its 'mouth' to reveal a floating talisman in the shape of a mini them. "_Are you ready?_" Dr. Facilier grabbed the necklace and turned towards me. "_Transformation central! Reformation central!_" He moved a hand over his face, and suddenly half of it appeared to be only bone. He stepped towards me, holding out the object, and I unsuccessfully squirmed to get away from him.

"_Transmogrification central!_" He cackled, grabbing my wrist and placing the talisman near my finger, which opened and _bit _it. I grunted and cringed away. What was this guy trying to do?

"_Can you feel it?_" the Shadow Man's gaze went to the talisman as it turned red, and then back to me. I gasped as my finger began to shimmer, and then it slowly spread to the rest of me, along with nearly unbearable pain.

"_You're changin', you're changin', you're changin', all right!_"

I happened to look up at him, and found his face staring at me, flashing in bright neon colors. "_I hope you're satisfied…_"

The colors only continued to spin around me, faster and faster. What was going on? I caught a glimpse of Lawrence, who was now staring down at me in absolute horror. Wait…staring…_down _at me? I'd always been taller than him!

"_But if you ain't, don't blame me! You can blame my friends on the other side!_"

"_You got what you wanted!_" I vaguely heard the masks cackle. "_But you lost what you had!_"

Finally the pain left just as quickly as it had come on, though I barely had the strength to open my eyes. It didn't matter, anyway, as, after a bright flash of lights, the room went dark, and the last thing I remembered was the glowing eyes of Dr. Facilier.

**A/N: Well…that was a bit awkward writing the singing part as if it's totally normal for people to break out into song…huh. But it was also kind of fun :P I had to split this chapter into two as it ended up being 6,000+ words, so if you liked this chapter, on to the next! **


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter Two

I awoke with a throbbing head, slowly struggling up. I blinked, my eyes on my…hands? "Ah!" I shouted, tumbling back. They looked nothing like what they had before; they were green, I had one less finger, and—

I slowly and unwillingly glanced down at the rest of me, and then exclaimed again. I was—a frog? No, no, no, that was not possible. I was dreaming, of course! That was what was going on; all this would soon be over, and I would wake up back in Maldonia, in my nice, comfortable bed…

I opened my eyes, but nothing had changed other than the fact that, through the glass jar I now realized I was contained in, I was staring back at…_me._

I glanced down at myself again, and then at the copy, which was staring at me almost curiously. That was _definitely _not what I looked like right now. But how was that_—_

"Surprised, Prince?" Dr. Facilier suddenly appeared and leaned in very close to the jar, and the mere sight of him frightened me. I cried out and fell backwards, then pressed myself as far as I could against the opposite side of the container. "Wh—what have you done to me?" I demanded, and the Shadow Man cackled loudly, reached over, and grabbed a mirror to hold in front of me. "I told you I saw _green _in your future." He laughed at his joke while I stared at myself, unbelieving, until he yanked it away and looked at the copy of me.

"Under no circumstances is he to be released. Understood?"

"Y-yes." The copy said, and I flinched. The voice, the lisp—"Lawrence?" I began, but Dr. Facilier slammed the cabinet shut before I could continue. "Let me out! Right now! Help! Anyone!"

After five minutes of both shouting and banging on the jar, I slumped to the bottom, my energy depleted. It was useless anyway. But I _had _to find a way to get out of here!

I cautiously got to my feet—and instantly tripped, falling back and smacking my head so hard I saw bright lights flash before me, like the ones the Shadow Man had created before. "Ugh…" I groaned, holding my head and struggling back up. I leaned against the jar for support, and then managed to take several paces to the other side. I had to make sure I _could _escape. If I were caught after getting out of the cabinet, and instead of escaping tripped again, I highly doubted I would get another chance.

When I had more or less gotten the hang of walking, I paused and listened, but heard no one speaking. I had heard a door open and close while I'd been shouting—but who had left? If it had been Lawrence, then I would absolutely no chance. But if the butler was still here, now alone…maybe I could convince him to free me? He was an idiot, anyway; I felt confident as I tried to think of what to say to him.

I coughed, my throat sore from the yelling. He'd never allow me to talk my way out of this, no matter how stupid he—

I straightened up suddenly, smiling. Of course! I drew a breath and coughed again, as loud as I could make it, and then again, and again, until finally the cabinet door creaked slowly open. I gagged and choked, clutching at my throat as if I were suffocating, and then fell without looking at who it was. Even if it was the Shadow Man—maybe he would attempt to spare my life?

Nothing happened for a moment. I lay perfectly still, my eyes closed, not even daring to breathe. Then, when I thought for sure I would have to give up the act, I felt the jar lifted and heard the lid unscrew slightly.

I inhaled sharply, lying still for a second more before I half opened my eyes, hearing a sigh of relief. I blinked and saw it _had _been the copy of me, and he nervously glanced around as if he were afraid he would be caught, and then set the jar back down, closing the cabinet, though not completely.

I jumped up, very pleased it had worked. I folded my legs under me, and then hopped up to the top of the jar, trying to grab onto anything to keep me there. But there was nothing, and I fell back to the bottom. I grunted in annoyance and tried again; still nothing.

I started slightly panicking—if Lawrence left, would there be another way out of whatever building I was in? I looked up at the lid again with an aggravated sigh and prepared to jump again. If there was ever a time I needed to hop away from something, I was pretty sure I would have it down.

I took a breath and lunged at the lid, hoping to knock it loose. It hardly budged, and I fell down again. Glaring up at the top of the thing, my patience very quickly dimming, I once again threw myself at it, only this time I landed on the side of the jar, not the lid, and the entire jar toppled over. _No! _I almost shouted, dazed. Although the lid had fallen off, it had made a very loud noise, and I was pretty sure my heart stopped for a moment.

I did not move, fearing I would be caught at any moment, but the cabinet did not open. Was Lawrence already gone? I blinked and forced myself up, staggering over to the door of the thing and ever-so-slightly opening it, peering out. I could hear music…but where _was_ I? I certainly wasn't in that creepy old emporium anymore, which I was extremely grateful for.

I waited for any sign of Lawrence or anyone else, but no one seemed to be there any longer, and I slowly opened the thing, closing it behind me before hoping down to the floor in case anyone decided they would check back in.

Hurriedly making my way over to the door, I found it was locked. I frowned. Of course, nothing was going to go easy for me, was it? I glanced around and then gasped excitedly, taking the thought back instantly. The window on the very side of the house…it was open!

"Yes!" I said aloud, and then flinched in fright before I remembered no one was there. I jumped up on the window sill, and looked out at a large crowd of dancers and costume wearers. It was the ball I had been supposed to go to! How did I end up here? What good luck, anyway! If I could get someone's attention, I could…

I frowned. What exactly did I plan on doing? Going up to someone and trying to explain what had just happened to me? _I _still didn't believe it; how on earth did I ever think anyone else would, either?

Paranoid I was about to be caught, I jumped onto the porch and then glanced around. Thankfully, there was no one, and I managed to get to the other side of the palace, taking the silent path behind the place. I jumped onto a low hanging tree branch, and then climbed my way up to the palace roof, where I half collapsed from both relief and exhaustion. It was no less quiet up here, but I felt safer being as far away as I could be for now from where I'd been.

I tucked my legs under me, shaking my head. What was I going to do? I solemnly sighed, realizing I didn't have an answer. And as of right now, as I stared out into the large group of people, knowing not one could help me…it seemed I never would.

And then…I heard a voice; the most beautiful voice I had ever heard! I looked up, noticing I was directly below a balcony. I hesitated, and then the singing stopped, replaced by a soft sob. I hopped up to the edge of the balcony, and saw a woman in a sparkly blue dress, leaning on the edge of the balcony…_crying_.

I frowned, watching silently as she looked up at the stars, muttered, "I can_not_ believe I'm doing this…" and then pressed the piece of paper she had to her chest. "Please, please, please…"

I hopped onto the balcony's ledge, looking at her. She was very beautiful, especially with the moonlight shining on her.

She glanced at me and gasped, and I almost jumped away. Then she sighed and said to no one in particular, "Very funny." Then she looked back at me. "So what now? I reckon you want a kiss?"

I hesitated for a moment, then lifted my hand slightly, smiling. "Kissing would be nice, yes?"

"Ah!" She shrieked and then staggered all the way back into the room, running into the book shelf.

"I'm sorry!" I exclaimed, and then hopped down to the edge of the rug. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry!" I laughed. "I did not mean to _scare _you, I—wait—no, no, no!" I held my hands out as she began throwing stuffed animals and whatever else she had in reach at me.

"Hold on a second—ah!" I covered my head with my arms, and then looked up as a teddy bear hit my feet, resting my arms on it briefly. "You have a very strong arm, Princess," I said, and then jerked back and lifted the bear to protect me as she threw yet another thing at me. "Okay, please!" I grabbed the bear's arm and pointed it at her as she raised another stuffed animal. "Put the monkey down!"

She threw it anyway, and I fell back, dazed. She stood and lifted a book, obviously about to hit me with it. "Stay back or I'll—"

"Please, please, please!" I exclaimed, jumping up onto her dresser. I tumbled and then sat up. "Oh wow." I mumbled, dizzy, and then stood. "Allow me to introduce myself._ I _am Prince Naveen."

She smacked me with the book anyway, practically crushing me under it. "…Of…Mardonia…" I finished quietly.

"A prince? But I didn't wish for any—hold on." The princess pointed at me as I struggled back to my feet, holding my aching head. "If you're the prince, then _who_—" She raised her voice and leaned towards me, and I fell again. "—was that waltzing with Lottie on the dance floor?"

I sighed and stood once again. "All I know is one minute I am a prince, charming and handsome, cutting-a-rug…and the next thing I know—" I tripped and then angrily stared at my feet. "I am tripping over _these_." I held them out towards the princess, who squealed in disgust and raised the book again.

I shielded myself with my hands. I already had an awful headache; I didn't need her hitting me again! "Wait, wait, w—wait!" I gasped and then straightened up, smiling. "I know this story!" I gestured at the book she was holding. "De Fragee Pruto!"

"The Frog Prince?" The princess murmured, and then slowly handed it to me.

"Yes, ah, yes!" I grunted as I lifted it. "My mother had the servants—" I set it down on the table and it flipped to the exact page I wanted. "—read this to me every night!" I finished with a laugh, and then grabbed the page, with the picture of a princess kissing the frog, and then the next, of the frog having turned back into a prince. Of course! "Yes, yes, yes!" I exclaimed, turning to the princess. "This is exactly the answer! You must _kiss _me."

The princess placed a hand on her hip. "Excuse me?"

"You will enjoy," I said, standing. "I guarantee. All woman enjoy the kiss of Prince Naveen. Come, we pucker." As I did so, my throat suddenly bulged out, and the princess jerked away from me. It went back to normal, and I placed a hand on my chest, confused, and then noticed how disgusted the princess looked. "That's new," I tried to explain, smiling.

"Look, I'm sorry." She shook her head. "I'd really like to help you, but…I just do _not _kiss _frogs_." She said, turning around and crossing her arms.

"Wait a second, but—" I protested, unbelieving. I'd finally found someone, maybe the only person, who could help me…and she was going to refuse to? "On the balcony! _You_ asked _me_!" I said, sinking down to a crouch.

"I didn't expect you to answer!"

"Oh, but you _must_ kiss me!" I said, and then got an idea. "Besides being _unbelievably _handsome, I also happen to come from a fabulously wealthy family." I noticed her interest was instantly sparked. Who cares if I couldn't exactly pay off what I was offering—I'd be human again! "Surely I can offer you some type of reward…or a wish I could grant perhaps?" I smiled as her gaze went off to the other side of the room. "Yes?"

She turned back to me. "Just…one kiss?"

_Yes! _I thought. "Just one." I smirked. "Unless you beg for more." I ran my tongue along my lips, and she grimaced. I rubbed my hand across my face as she began to lean, and then puckered my lips. I actually thought she was going to do it until she suddenly exclaimed in disgust and turned around, shaking her head and murmuring to herself.

_Please…_I thought, now desperate, and then glanced over to the side, grabbing her perfume and spraying some into my mouth, once again readying myself for her to kiss me. And then she did! I felt _something _happen, but when I opened my eyes and looked down at myself, I gasped. I was still a frog.

With a groan of annoyance, I suddenly realized the princess was no longer standing in front of me. I crawled slowly to the edge of the desk, and looked down with a gasp. "Faldi faldonza…"

Far below—or at least, what seemed fairly far—was the dress the princess had been wearing, and instead of her…a green frog poked its head out from under it. "You don't look that much different," she began, "but how'd you get way up there? And how'd I get way down here in all this—" She gasped as she saw at her hand, similar to the way I had found out before, and then looked into the mirror that was next to her. She shrieked, and hopped up to the table where I was, barreling into me.

"Easy, Princess, do not panic!" I tried, but she only groaned in utter disgust and stood. "Oh," she moaned, "What did you do to me? I'm green, and—and I'm _slimy_, and—"

"No, no, no!" I said, getting up and walking over to her, taking her arm. "That is not slime."

"What?"

"You are secreting mucous." I corrected, trying to calm her. I was pretty sure I'd learned that somewhere at some point in my life, but either way it didn't seem to comfort her. "You—!" She exclaimed, and I cried out as she tackled me, knocking us both into the shelf above us and then the toy rocking horse beside the table. A book toppled over from the shelves and onto the opposite side of the horse we were on, and it launched us clear out of the room and down into the masquerade.

We both landed on the drums, which resulted in the man playing them to try to hit us with the sticks. The other instrument players apparently thought he was playing a faster tune, and followed. Had we not been in this situation, it might have slightly amused me. But I grabbed the princess's hand as the man hit the symbol, and we were once again tossed off—into one of the dancer's dresses!

Falling to the bottom of her dress as she tripped and fell over, I glanced at the princess before the woman screamed, and somewhere someone shouted for the dog to get us. "Run!" I shouted, grabbing her arm again and hopping onto the table.

"I can't run; I'm a frog!" She protested, and slammed into the side of the table. "Then hop!" I said, helping her up, and then we both darted off as the dog jumped onto the table as well.

"Down boy, down monster dog!" I exclaimed as we ran, but to no avail. The dog continued to bark and chase us. A man with a sword swiped it at us, and we ducked, something landing over our heads a moment later. "Look out! Out of the way, excuse me!" I shouted, hoping we didn't bump into anyone.

"Where are we going?" The princess shouted, but I ignored her. "I can't see!"

"Neither can I!" I retorted, aggravated, and then suddenly tripped. Whatever had been covered us flung off, and we toppled into a bunch of balloons, getting tangled up in the strings. I glanced at the dog, still coming towards us, and then grabbed the strings. "Going up," I said, grabbing the princess's arm as we lifted into the air. "Wait, Stella, it's me, Tiana!" she shouted.

"_Tiana?_" the dog gasped as she lunged for us, missing and falling back to the ground.

Tiana looked up at me, shocked. "Stella just talked to me!" she said, and I frowned, rolling my eyes. "The dog just spoke to me!"

"You know," I glared down at her, making sure she had a grip on the strings before I released her. "If you are going to let _every little thing _bother you, it's going to be a very long night!"

I looked above us as a large bolt of lightning tore across the sky, letting out a long sigh.

I had a feeling it was going to be a long night anyway, even without the princess annoying me.

**A/N: Ooh. Improvising scenes are fun. I am definitely enjoying writing this story :D Well, what do you think? Was it any good? Should I continue? Please review and tell me what you thought of it, and if I should continue! I think I might continue it anyway, or at least update once and a while. Thanks for reading! **


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter Three

"_Voodoo?_"

I rolled my eyes at Tiana as we floated along in the pouring rain. Why had I ever thought it was a good idea to tell her what had happened? She was only going to get _more_ irritating now!

"You mean to tell me this all happened 'cause you were messin' with the Shadow Man?" She continued, and I scowled down at her. "He was very charismatic!" I defended myself, and she groaned. "It serves me right for wishing on stars." She muttered. "The _only _way to get what you want in this world is through hard work."

I stared at her like she was crazy. "Hard work?" I echoed, and then laughed slightly. "Why…why would a princess need to work hard?"

She looked up at me with a slight shrug. "Oh, I'm not a princess; I'm a waitress."

"A…a _waitress?_" I placed a hand on my head, unbelieving. I knew she had looked familiar! She was the same girl I had seen outside the café when I had first arrived! "Well no wonder the kiss did not work!" I said, and then pointed at her. "You_ lied_ to me!"

"I…I never said I was a princess!" she protested, like that made it better.

"Well you never said you were a wai—a _waitress!_" I was very aware of her deepening scowl, although I did not care. "You—you were wearing a crown!"

"It was a _costume _party, you spoiled little rich boy!"

_Ooh, so insulting!_ "Oh, oh yes, oh yes? Well, the egg is on your face, all right? Because _I _do not have any riches!"

"What?" Tiana exclaimed, and I moved my hand out in front of me in a sweeping motion. "I am completely broke!" I laughed and then stopped abruptly with an, "Uh-oh," as a balloon above us popped, the rest of them following, and we plummeted down into the trees, finally landing in the swamp.

I lifted out of the water, spitting and coughing, and then realized Tiana was under me as she shoved me away and stood up, brushing herself off. I leaned against the tree root behind me.

"You said you were fabulously wealthy!" Tiana coughed, and I shook my head at her. "No, no, no. My _parents _are fabulously wealthy." I raised my arm. "But they cut me off for being a—_leech! Leech!_" I shouted, noticing I had one on my arm, and fell back into the water as Tiana pulled it off. She shook the thing at me. "You're broke, and you have the gall to call _me _a liar?" She threw the leech behind her, and suddenly a giant fish leapt out of the water and ate it.

Both of us screamed and darted to shore, Tiana landing on top of me as we tumbled. I spit out water and then glared at her. "It was not a lie! I fully inte—ah!" I happened to look up and notice a huge bird looming above us, its wings spread out, and we ran again. "I fully intend to be rich again!" I finished, half out of breath as we dodged the bird's beak several times. "Once I marry Miss Charlotte La Bouff, if she will have me!"

"You a prince?" Tiana asked.

"Obviously!" I retorted, and she nodded. "She'll have you!"

We yelped as the ground suddenly disappeared under our feet, and we slid down a hill, flipping through the air until we landed—me headfirst—onto a log.

"All right then," Tiana said breathlessly as I straightened myself up, rubbing my head. "Once you two are married, you're gonna keep your promise and get me my restaurant, right?"

"Whoa, not so fast," I frowned, putting my hands out. "I made that promise to a beautiful _princess,_ not a cranky wai—why are those logs moving?" I interrupted myself, staring out into the swamp, and Tiana followed my gaze with a slight gasp. "Those aren't logs!" She said, and we both stood, panicked, backing into each other as a bunch of alligators moved towards us, and then suddenly the 'log' we'd been on shifted, and the gator's head popped out of the water, staring at us. "I got dibs on the big one," he growled, and I cried out as they all of a sudden all lunged at us, and I struggled not to be eaten, jumping onto each of them to get away from the others, and then suddenly realized Tiana was no longer anywhere near me. "Ti—" I tried, but had to focus on not becoming these creatures's dinner, managing to get to a trunk on the other side of the swamp, leaving the alligators attacking nothing.

I pressed myself against it as it began to rain again, and then suddenly noticed Tiana leaning out of the hole not too far above me. "Psst!" I began, almost unable to speak with fear. "Lower the vine!"

"Get your own tree!" She whispered, and I frowned. Was she being serious? I turned around with a gasp as the alligators finally realized where I was. "There he is!" One of them shouted, and they slowly began floating towards me. "Okay," I looked back up at Tiana. "Help me out of this swamp, and once I've married Charlotte—" I glanced behind me again and then clasped my hands together, begging now. "I shall get you your restaurant!"

She didn't move for a minute, and my panic grew to absolute maximum as the gators got closer. "Mm, you're gonna taste so good, you wasted, invaluable rat!"

I exclaimed, and then grabbed the vine as it lowered. She tugged on it just as the alligator's teeth would have caught me. "Quick, quick, pull me up!" I cried, gasping for breath and scrabbling desperately to get a grip, climbing over the side and barreling into Tiana.

"You can hop, but you can't hide!" The alligators laughed. "We got all night!"

I shook my head to clear it and then looked down at Tiana, who was glaring up at me as I realized I was still on top of her, and I got up, smirking slightly. "Well, waitress, looks like we're going to be here for a while. We may as well get… comfortable…"

She stood and then kicked me hard, knocking me back. "Keep your _slimy _self away from me!" She demanded.

"I told you…it is not slime!" I gasped, doubled over. "It is _mucous_!"

She gave the same little _hmmph _she'd done the very first time I'd met her and turned away from me, settling down without another word. I groaned and then finally managed to straighten up, grabbing a leaf and retreating to the corner. "Fine." I muttered, and then lay down on my side, covering myself with the leaf as if it were a blanket, facing the back of the trunk. What had I gotten myself into? I'd never asked for this! And if I'd never gotten caught up with Dr. Facilier in the first place…none of it would be happening. But I'd find a way to break whatever curse he had put on me, and then I'd…I would…

I frowned. Well, I didn't know what I was going to do after that. I sighed and closed my eyes, but did not sleep for what felt like forever, my mind racing. And when I finally _did _fall asleep, it felt like only a second before something conked me on the head, and I jolted awake. "Ow!" I shouted, turning over and placing a hand on my head, groggy and confused.

"Rise and shine, Sleeping Beauty!" Tiana's voice called from somewhere outside of the trunk. I glanced over to see an acorn, realizing she'd thrown it at me, and instantly came to the conclusion she _enjoyed _making my head ache. "Gators are gone." She continued, and I peered out of the trunk, frowning. _Really? Because I couldn't have gotten that from the fact you're _outside_! _

"We have to get back to New Orleans and undo this mess _you _got us into!" Tiana had really gone all out—she'd made a complete raft out of wood and vines, and was just finishing it when I hopped onto it. "I was not the one parading around in your phony baloney tiara," I smiled, snapping a twig with a small spider web on the end of it off an overhanging tree branch and leaning back, using it as a makeshift ukulele. It worked, too, although Tiana only glared at me and gave an exasperated sigh, beginning to paddle with a long stick.

"Music to paddle by," I said, relaxing back even further, and Tiana grunted. "I could use a little help!"

I paused. "I will play louder, then."

She sighed again and turned around. "How about a little _less _piggin', and a little—" she trailed off with a gasp, and I stopped, looking up to see an alligator's mouth practically consuming the little raft. I screamed to match Tiana and jumped over to her, clutching her to me in fear—and then the gator raised his head out of the water completely. "I know that tune!" he shouted. "Dippermouth Blues!"

The sound of a trumpet snapped me out of my fear, and I glanced up at the gator, realizing it was _he _who was playing the instrument. I gasped in delight now, dropped Tiana, and grabbed my 'ukulele'. "Play it, brother!" I exclaimed, and strummed along with him. "Oh yes!" I laughed as we finished, and I hopped on top of his head. He got up on his feet and stepped onto land, grabbing me and joyfully jumping around. "Where you been all my life?" he chuckled.

"Where did _you _learn to play like that?" I asked curiously, and he set me back down on the ground. "Why the Bayou's the best jazz school in the world!" He replied, spinning his trumpet on his finger. "All the greats play on the riverboats. Oh, Louis give anything to be up there jammin' with the big boys…"

I suddenly felt sorry for him. "So why don't you?" I asked, and he sighed. "Oh, I tried once…" He got a flat, irritated look on his face, as if remembering it. "It didn't end well."

Tiana was suddenly beside me. "It has been a real pleasure meetin' you, Louis," She said, and took my hand, pulling on it. I resisted for a moment, until she pulled harder, and I was forced to follow her back to the raft, falling back into a sitting position as she released my arm. "And thank you for comin' and not eatin' us, but we best be on our way."

I let out an irritated sigh, and then Louis looked down at us sadly as Tiana began paddling. "Where—where ya'll goin'?"

"To find somebody to break this spell," Tiana replied, and Louis frowned. "What spell?"

I stood and turned around. "Brace yourself, my scaly friend. We are not frogs…we are humans."

Louis burst into laughter, toppling back, and then stared at us, suddenly calm. "Ya'll serious?"

"I am Naveen, Prince of Maldonia." I introduced myself with a bow, and then gestured uncaringly at Tiana. "And she is Tiana, the waitress." I leaned towards Louis and whispered, "Do not kiss her."

Tiana gasped and turned to me. "Now just a second!" I stepped back as she talked to Louis, crossing my arms and amused I had irritated her. She completely deserved it anyway! "This goon here," Tiana continued, "got himself turned into a frog by a voodoo man, and now—"

"Voodoo?" Louis interrupted, suddenly appearing panicked and dropping his trumpet to recoil, as if something had just jumped at him. "Like the kind Mama Odie do?"

I glanced at Tiana, just as confused as she was. "Mama…who-d?" I tried.

"Mama Odie!" Louis corrected, and then waved his arms around. "She the voodoo queen of the Bayou! She got _magic,_ and _spells_…all kinds of hoodoo."

"Could you take us to her?" Tiana and I both asked at the same time, intrigued. Could this be our chance at getting turned back?

Louis gasped. "Through the deepest, darkest part of the Bayou? Facin' razor-sharp pricker bushes, and trappers, and hunters—with _guns?_" He pointed at us. "No." Then he leaned back against the tree and began playing his trumpet again.

Tiana sighed hopelessly, and then shrugged at me. I held up a finger, very confident. "Watch and learn." I hopped over to Louis. "Louis!" I began, leaning against the tree root. "It is too bad we cannot help you with your dream. If only you were smaller…less toothy." I said, pulling back his mouth slightly to prove my point. "You could play jazz to adoring crowds without scaring them." I smiled as he suddenly ceased playing. "Anyway, enjoy your loneliness, my friend! Abenaza." I jumped back to Tiana.

"Cute," she said, "But it's never gonna…" I waved my finger and then grinned huge at her as Louis suddenly came up behind me. "Hey guys, I just had me a crazy idea…what if I asked Mama Odie to turn _me _human?"

"Louis!" I exclaimed, grabbing Tiana and hopping with her up onto the alligator's head. "You are a genius!"

"Hallelujah!" Louis exclaimed, jumping into the water, beginning to play his trumpet as he swam along. "_If I were a human being, I'd head straight for New Orleans!_" We jumped to his tail as he moved. "_And I'd blow this horn, so hard and strong, like no one they've ever seen._" He leaned towards us joyfully, and then jerked away, causing us to fall off into the water.

"_You've heard of Louis Armstrong,_" I crawled on top of a turtle's shell, looking down at Tiana as she struggled up and then turning back and slightly dancing."_Mister Sydney Bechet. All the boys gonna step aside when they hear this old ex-gator play; listen!_" Louis happily played his trumpet, jumping onto rocks and tree roots as he did so, and I grabbed another spider-web ukulele. "Oh yeah," I laughed, and began to strum it, and the turtle we were on raised its head and began swimming along behind Louis, until the branch he'd somehow been swinging on broke, and he fell on top of us.

"_When I'm human, as I hope to be!_" He rose out of the water, all three of us on top of his head. "_I'm gonna blow this horn till the cows come home and everyone's gonna bow down to me!_" We had jumped down to his tail again as he used the turtle as a top hot, eventually tossing him to get caught on a tree branch. "Thank you! Thank you!" Louis chuckled, acting as if he had a crowd. "Aw, thank you! I love you too baby!"

I laughed and began strumming my 'ukulele' again. "_When I'm myself again, I want just the life I had!_" I grabbed a bunch of low hanging flowers and tossed them up into the air like confetti. "_A great big party every night, that doesn't sound too bad!_" I leaned towards Tiana, who rolled her eyes and sighed in annoyance.

Several colorful butterflies came down and leaned towards me. "_A redhead on my left arm, a brunette on my right, a blonde or two to hold the candles, that sounds just about right; eh, Louis?_" I jumped into the air. "_Life is short, when you're done, you're done,_" The butterflies caught me and placed me on Louis' head again. "_We're on this earth to have some fun! And that's the way things are_…" I leaned down to look at Louis, and he laughed. "Tell it, brother!" he said, stepping onto a tree root and playing his trumpet again.

"_When I'm human, and I'm gonna be! I'm gonna tear it up like I did before,_" I tumbled down to the edge of Louis' tail, winking at the butterfly girls. "_That's a royal guarantee!"_

"You—" Tiana began, shooing away the butterflies with a stick. "Are getting married!"

_Way to ruin the fun. _"Oh, right." I groaned, and then smiled, waving at the girls. "I'll just have to leave a string of broken hearts behind me!"

"_Your modesty becomes you,_" Tiana said, grabbing my 'ukulele' and tossing it into the water, shoving a stick into my hands instead. "_and your sense of responsibility! I worked hard for everything I got, and that's the way it's supposed to be!_" I stared at the stick for a moment, broke it in half, and then used it to drum on Louis' scales as she paddled along.

"_When I'm a human being,_" She rolled her eyes and looked forward again. _"At least I'll act like one! If you do your best each and every day, good things are sure to come your way_. _What you give is what you get! My daddy said that and I'll never forget, and I commend it to you._" She glanced back at me still joking around, and I blinked, realizing she had maneuvered our entire way through a dense area of the swamp without either of us noticing. I leaned onto Louis tail as he brought it closer to him.

"_When we're human, and we're gonna be!_"

"_I'm gonna blow my horn!_" Louis played for a moment as if to prove the point.

I jumped, strumming yet another ukulele type stick I'd grabbed. "_I'm gonna live the high life!_"

"_I'm gonna do my best to take my place in the sun_…" Tiana closed her eyes for just one moment, and then Louis was suddenly wedged in a tree trunk. She smiled, jumped on top of his head, and grabbed a stick with moss on the end, trying to make him sneeze.

"_When we're human!_" The two of laughed as he did sneeze and broke free, skipping out into the water and then splashing down with one last blast from his trumpet.

Finally the water settled down again, and Tiana and I crouched on Louis' back as he stopped laughing. "Phew, man I ain't had that much fun in _years!_"

I looked at him curiously. "Why?"

Louis glanced at me and shrugged after a moment. "Not much to do 'round here, I guess." He sighed and lowered his head slightly to rest in the water. "So I heard how _you _got caught up in this voodoo-ness, but not you." He gestured at Tiana, and she glared at me. "Genius here had the _wonderful _idea that me kissin' him would break the spell, but really…"

"Oh…" I groaned, leaning back and shaking my head, trying to block her out. Now she'd never let it go. I frowned; not that she ever was going to in the first place! I mean, it was all her fault anyway for lying to me, why was she acting like she was so innocent?

Well, it _was _kind of my fault as well…but I wasn't going to let her know I thought that. Once we visited that voodoo lady Louis had been speaking of, I'd never have to deal with her annoying self again.

I looked up, but neither were paying any attention to me, and so I rolled onto my side and closed my eyes. However much sleep I'd gotten the night before, it hadn't been enough, and after being so _rudely _awakened this morning, I think I deserved at least a rest.

**A/N: It's almost ridiculous how fun this is to write :P Review if you'd like to make me happy! :D See you next chapter! :)**


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: Yay! More cute scenes between Naveen and Tiana that didn't happen in the movie! :D But of course, the movie was amazing just the way it was. I just like experimenting where it could have gone :P So here's chapter four, enjoy!**

Chapter Four

When I opened my eyes next, I immediately sat up, surprised. The sky had gone from blue to a light pink, and the sun had already set. I looked at Tiana, who was settled down a little bit away from me, speaking to Louis. But her words did not reach my ears. She looked extremely pretty, almost glowing in the pinkish light. I couldn't look away even as she noticed I was staring at her. "What?" She asked, and I shook my head. "Eh, you…you had a spider above you." I lied, and then cringed as she gasped and swept her hands above her head. "Where?" she cried.

"No, no! It was just a bug—a twig!" I sighed, and she gazed at me as if I were crazy. "It…is gone." I smiled slightly, and she shook her head.

"You are not scared of a twig, are you?" I asked, attempting to rid myself of the awkward feeling I had, and then hopped onto Louis' nose as she glared at me.

Louis chuckled slightly and then glanced back at Tiana. "Now, that restaurant of yours…" he began, and I inwardly sighed. She would never give up on that dream, would she? I felt a twinge of discomfort, almost guilt. And I had made a promise I could not keep to get it for her. "Is it gonna have étouffée?"

Tiana smiled dreamily. "Jambalaya, gumbo…it's gonna have it all!"

"Mmm," Louis said. "Aways wanted to try red beans and rice, muffulettas, po' boys…" He drew a breath to continue, but I held out my hands. "Oh, stop, Louis!" I laughed slightly, though I was serious. "You two are making me so very hungry." I placed my hands on my growling stomach, and then all my attention suddenly went to a swarm of bugs that flew by. _Why _did they look almost..._tasty__? _My tongue shot out a moment later, and I thought for a moment. "Interesting…" I murmured, and then jumped into the water as Louis stopped.

"_What _are _you_ doin'?" Tiana asked, and I pressed a finger to my lips. "Ssh! You are frightening the food." I tried to catch one of the bugs with my tongue, but missed and instead smacked myself in the face, causing me to fall backwards. "This is harder than it looks," I chuckled slightly, standing and trying yet again. I thought I had caught one, until it came back and hit me, knocking me to the water once more. I'd grabbed a giant piece of the tree. I groaned, dazed, and then heard Tiana giggle at me. _It's not funny! _I thought, attempting to get the branch out of my mouth.

"Oh no. No, no, no." I heard her begin, though couldn't see what she was talking about due to a bunch of grass between us. "There is no way I'm kissin' a frog and eatin' a bug on the same day. Oh!"

I finally managed to get rid of the branch, and then I saw the last bug around us land on a flower, looking up at the sky. Determined to stop my hunger pangs, which were almost the only thing I could focus on now, I crept up, shot my tongue out at it—and somehow ended up literally tongue-tied with Tiana, ramming into her and dropping to the water.

"Hello…" I said uncertainly, and she stood, trying to pull our tongues free. "What are you doing?" I mumbled, irritated. "Stop moving! You are making this very difficult!"

The grass suddenly parted beside us and Louis stepped out. "Ya'll find anything to yet? I—oh my." He inspected our situation and frowned.

"Um…" I began, unsure what he was thinking about all this, but he picked us up before I could continue. "Hang on, old Louis got it covered."

"No, no, no!" I protested, but he twisted the two of together, attempting to help and yet only tangling us further, leaving us unable to even move. He set us back down, only standing up by one of my legs. "How's that?" he asked, and I glanced at Tiana. "This could be a little better," she murmured.

Louis tapped his chin for a minute, and then appeared to get an idea. "You know what this needs? A sharp stick! Be right back!" he said, and then went off, singing to himself.

_Oh, great! _I thought, and then Tiana muttered, "This is all your fault."

"My fault, my fault—let me tell you something!" I said as we struggled to free ourselves. "I was having a _wonderful _time until—"

"Hoo, well lookie here!" a voice suddenly silenced both of us, and we stopped glaring at each other long enough to see the same bug that had been on the flower before calmly come up to us, smiling. "Ooh, _girl_, I guess you and your boyfriend got a little carried away, am I right, am I right?"

"Don't be ridiculous—" Both of us began sputtering, upset the firefly would even think that, but he didn't seem to care either way. "Uh-huh, let me shine a little light on the situation!" He flew up a bit further and then strained, his backside lighting up for just brief second. "'scuse me, one more time now." He chuckled, and almost got it to light up, but it once again went out. He frowned, and then twisted it as if it were a light bulb, finally lighting up very brightly. "Ah! That's more better, yeah!"

Tiana and I both cringed away from him as he flew closer, the light nearly blinding, and he smiled. "Oh it's okay, baby, I don't explode, me! I ain't no fire cracka!" He turned around. "I just got my big butt glowin', that's right! Ooh, women love a man with a big back porch!" He laughed, and then flew around us. "Oh Lord, you done diss up real good, for sure!" He grabbed a part of one of our tongues. "Now where this go to at…?"

"Oh dear…" I muttered, wincing from the light, and he glanced at me. "Hang on, cap'n, I'm just gon'…give a little twist here!" He disappeared between us, and I heard Tiana squeal.

"Oh, I'm gettin' annoyed yellow now, hoo-hoo!" His light only got brighter, and he started singing as he tried to untangle us, and then popped back up, tugging on the end of my tongue, and Tiana and I both exclaimed as we spun and fell free from each other.

"'Bout time I introduced myself," the firefly said, and then drew his name in light. "My name's Raymond, but everybody call me Ray." He added, erasing the last four letters.

"Pardon me," I began, pointing a finger at him and smiling slightly. "But your accent…it's funny, no?"

"Well, I'm a Cajun, bruh! Born and bred the Bayou! Ya'll must be new around here, huh?"

I stood. "Actually we are from a place…" I brushed water off myself and laughed softly. "far, far away from this world."

"Go to bed, ya'll from Shreveport?"

_What? _I wondered confusedly, and then realized he thought I was speaking about distance. "Uh, n-no, no, no, no." I corrected. "We are people."

"Prince Charmin' here," Tiana began, "got himself turned into a frog by a voodoo witch doctor."

I looked at Ray and grinned, shrugging. "Well, there you go!" Ray said, and I glanced at Tiana. If only she had accepted that so easily.

"And we're on our way to Mama Odie's," Tiana continued, "we think maybe she could—"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa! Mama Odie?" Ray frowned, flying in front of her as she nodded. "Ya'll heading in the wrong direction, cher! What kind-a chucklehead told ya'll to go this-a way?"

Louis suddenly burst out of the grass, startling Ray, who flew beside Tiana. "I found a stick!" He shouted, and we both stared at him. I glanced at Tiana as she crossed her arms and said, "Louis? Ray here says you've been takin' us in the wrong direction."

Louis suddenly looked around nervously, dropping the stick and laughing nervously. "I was…listen…I was confused by the topography and…the geography…and the choreography…"

"First rule of the Bayou," Ray murmured, leaning towards Tiana. "Never take directions from a gator." Then he whistled, and both of us turned around to see the trees suddenly slowly lighting up with too many fireflies to even begin to attempt to guess a number. "Well, me and my relationals will help show ya'll the way!"

"Achedanza!" I murmured, awed. Ray went up to one of the branches, spoke for a moment, and then they began to play instruments, and all the fireflies started flying around. Ray came back down to us, looking at Tiana. "Come on, cher! Just follow the bouncin' butts!"

"_We gonna take you down, we gonna take you down, we gonna take you all the way down…_" I began dancing slightly as Ray sang, and Tiana suddenly grabbed my arm, pulling me along as I realized they had flown off towards a group of trees, and we hopped along after them, Louis following. "_Goin' down the Bayou, goin' down the Bayou, goin' down the Bayou, takin' you all the way._"

I stopped as Tiana accidentally tripped, helping her back to her feet, smiling at her. She seemed surprised, and then smiled as well, although when we turned back, we did not see the fireflies anymore. How did we just lose sight of trillion and something lit-up bugs?

I heard Ray's distant voice, and then another whistle, and then fireflies lit up all around us, and I glanced at Tiana as we both hopped onto the lily-pads.

"_We gon' take ya, we gon' take ya, we gon' take ya all the way down. We know where you're goin' and we're goin' with you, takin' you all the way._"

Louis sped past us, using fireflies at the end of his tail as practically a propeller and then sinking into the water as they left. I laughed and looked up at the lights as we jumped along.

"_Goin'_ _down the Bayou, goin' down the Bayou, goin' down the Bayou, takin' ya all_…"

Ray and all the other fireflies spiraled up into the air and made the impression they had exploded, like fireworks, and then drifted back down. "Yeah you know!" Ray shouted joyfully. "Come on, keep that line flowin', and them lights a-glowin'!" Tiana and I settled back down on Louis' head as he swam, following the lights closely.

I laughed after a few moments and shook my head, leaning back, and Tiana glanced at me with only the smallest of smiles. "What?"

"I don't know." I shrugged. "That was…fun."

She nodded slightly without answering and then turned her attention back to the lights ahead, and I stared at her. Did she even know the meaning of that word?

It hardly took long before Ray flew up next to us and said, "Well, this is far as the rest of 'em needs ta go."

Tiana and I hopped up onto land, as did Louis, and then Ray flew up to the rest of his family. "I'll take 'em the rest of the way!" he said, and they began to go back the other direction.

"Nice meeting ya'll!" Tiana said, and I waved a goodbye, hopping in front of her and under a tree's slightly lifted trunk before she even reached it. At least we were going the right way now.

"Evangeline?" I heard Tiana ask after a few moments from somewhere inside the little tunnel, and I turned to see them appearing out of it.

"She's the most prettiest firefly that every did glow." Ray replied, and then squeaked. "You know, I talk to Evangeline most every night. She kinda shy; don't say much. And I know in my heart…" he continued, flying up to light up behind a heart shaped leaf. "Someday we gonna be together."

"Aw, that's so sweet!" Tiana said, climbing up beside me.

"Yes, so sweet." I said partially sarcastically, smiling. "Just…do not settle down so quickly, my friend. There are plenty of fireflies in the swamp."

Tiana gave an exasperated sigh and slammed the stick she held into the bush in front of her, making a small pathway. "What?" I asked, and then shook my head as she ignored me and smacked another part of the bush out of the way.

"Ow!" Louis shouted as he pricked himself with a bur, although we both continued on. He'd find another way around the bushes. I followed Tiana down a long branch, silently watching her as she hit the leaves and such out of the way. "You know, waitress, I have finally figured out what is wrong with you." I said at last, pointing at her.

"Have you now?" she said, slashing more leaves and sounding as if she didn't care at all.

"You do not know how to have fun." I shrugged. "There; somebody had to say it."

"Thank you!" Tiana forced a smile at me, pushing past a branch. "'Cause I've figured out what your problem is, too!"

I placed a hand behind my back arrogantly. "I am…too wonderful?"

She released the branch, which snapped back and hit me right in the face. I fell back and groaned, dazed, looking up at Tiana as she pointed the stick at me. "No, you're a no-count, polandering, lazy bump on a log!"

I laughed and stood up, forcing a cough. "_Killjoy!_"

Tiana bent towards me. "What'd you say?"

"Ah, nothing." I smiled, shrugging innocently, and then as soon as she'd turned away I coughed again. "_Stick in the mud_."

"Listen here, mister!" Tiana said, poking my chest with her finger as I continued to act like I'd said nothing. "This 'stick in the mud' has had to work two jobs her whole life, while you've been sucking on a silver spoon—" I jumped after her as she moved on and tossed her stick away, continuing to rant. "—chasing chamber maids around your—your ivory tower!"

I frowned and glanced down as she hopped away. "Actually, it's polished marble." I muttered, then paused. "And if you do not _like _working so much, why do it?"

"Because," Tiana looked back at me and rolled her eyes, as if I'd asked the most stupid question she'd ever heard. "Not everyone has as much money as you do!" She gave me an expression that was just barely a smirk. "Or, _did_."

I frowned and briefly glanced away, and then realized she'd stopped where she was, staring at nothing. "You've never had to do anything you didn't want to." She said. "But my family barely had enough money to keep our house before I could get a job. I_ needed_ to work. I _still _need to. And when my daddy…" She trailed off, and I hesitated before taking a few steps towards her. She brought a hand up to her eyes as if she'd been crying, although I couldn't be sure as she was facing away from me. "Sorry; don't know why I just…we should go."

She began to hop off, but I did not move for a moment, thinking I should say something but not quite knowing _what_, and then shouted as a net suddenly grabbed me, the catcher holding me in front of them as I struggled to get away, gripping the top so I could not jump out. "Ooh, I got me one, boys!" The guy said, walking off. "Go on, get that little one over there!"

_Tiana! _I squirmed to get out of the net, but the hunter wouldn't allow it, stepping onto a boat. "Hoo! This is a good day, yes it is!" he laughed, holding me up in front of him as I tried to get away from him. "Look at them big frog legs, I'mma have me some _cornbread _with you, oh yeah!"

Suddenly, almost too fast for me to see, Ray—or at least I assumed it was him—shot up the man's nose, creating enough of a distraction for him to release his hold on the net, which I fell out of and splashed into the water. Sinking halfway to the bottom, I looked up through the shimmering surface, staying down until at least I was sure the hunters had lost interest in me.

Then I popped up and gasped for breath, seeing the boat was already leaving. "I'm free! Hah!" I began humming slightly myself until suddenly something caught my attention out of the corner of my eyes: Tiana was trapped in one of the idiot's cages. I panicked for a moment and then shot my tongue out. It stuck to the back of the boat, and I gasped as I suddenly was skidding across the water. It took me a second or two to put my legs steadily down, and I laughed—until I rammed into the back of the boat with a cry.

"Oh…" I groaned, sinking back into the water, and then swimming as fast as I could under the boat to the other side, lifting myself onto it and peering at the man closest to me. I jumped onto him and crawled onto his head just as he lifted his hat, placing a finger on me and scratching. I grimaced and then scratched his head, hoping to only draw attention from the two staring at me. Tiana gasped, and I glanced at her, placing a finger to my lips as the biggest hunter raised the bat made of wood he'd been holding—and smashed it down onto the man's head. I jumped right as he did so, and then he hit him again. I dodged this blow, too, and several more until I noticed the man sitting on the cage Tiana was in get up.

"Now! Go!" I told her as I jumped again, and then fell, grabbing onto the man's nose, gasping as one of them pointed a gun right at me. Were they really going to shoot the man? I clenched my teeth and closed my eyes, bracing myself, and then blinked, seeing Tiana jump towards the man's pants, which made the other man shoot right between his legs, just missing him.

I hopped next to Tiana, onto one of their feet. "Watch this," I said confidently, and turned to the hunters, bulging out my throat. We jumped to the top of the hunter as he smashed the other one's foot, and Tiana laughed, shooting her tongue out, and then we jumped again as the other one hit him.

We continued this, all the hunters babbling on at once, until all but the biggest hunter was on the boat's floor, and I held out my hand to take Tiana's. We both jumped above the man, who hit himself in the face and dropped next to the others, us landing on top of him.

"These two…ain't like no frogs I ever seen…" one of them said. "They smart."

Tiana and I hopped down in front of them. "And we talk, too!" Tiana said breathlessly, and all three of them screamed and paddled as fast as they could away from us as we jumped out onto a rock, catching our breaths and relieved. I looked over at Tiana, who looked as though she were crying, and I asked, "Are you all right?" in concern before I realized she was quietly _laughing_.

"I'm fine!" She said after a moment, placing her hand over her mouth, and I raised an eyebrow at her. "Ah!" I smiled. "You do!"

"Do what?" She asked, looking at me as she slowly stopped giggling.

"Know what fun is," I replied with a little smirk, and she glared at me, although she was still smiling. I hopped onto shore, and then glanced at her as she jumped beside me. "I don't know," she said, "if _that _was considered fun."

I shrugged and began to walk off into the bushes. She followed me and after a moment shook her head. "That was…nice what you did back there."

I glanced at her. "Oh what, you mean save your life?" I leaned towards her with an arrogant grin.

She stepped past me and pulled back a piece of grass, releasing it to smack me. At least it hadn't hurt like the branch had before. "Yeah, that."

"It was genius, no?" I asked, and she shook her head at me again. I laughed as I thought about what she had said. "'And we talk, too'. Hah, I like that! You are secretly funny."

"_Not _a stick in the mud?"

"W-well, I wouldn't go—"

"Say it, say it," Tiana interrupted, and I laughed softly. "All right, fine. You're not _exactly…_"

"I can't hear you," she said, cupping a hand behind her ear. "I'm sorry, what?"

"…a complete stick _deep _in the mud…" I continued, and she giggled. We both looked up in concern as we heard Louis shout, and as we went over to him found Ray pulling out burs from his backside. "Ow! Easy, _easy!_"

"Oh, this one in there, ain't it? Hold on—"

"Aghh!" Louis exclaimed, and Ray peered out at Tiana, pulling another bur off. "Cher, I know we gots to get to Mama Odie lickity-split, but this particular extract-ification gon' take a while, yeah."

"Aw, poor Louis." Tiana said, patting his nose, and he held up a finger. "You know what would make me feel better—ow! Crawfish, smothered in Remoulade Sauce—_mercy!_"

"Got a lil' mo'!" Ray called.

"Some banana foster…" Louis continued, "sprinkled with brollies…_Ahh_, oh, mama!"

"How about some swamp gumbo?" Tiana asked, tapping a large pumpkin.

"That'll do." Louis said, and then shouted again.

"Sounds delicious." I said, leaning back against the tree and putting my feet up on a mushroom, spreading a leaf on me life a napkin. "I'll start with a pre-dinner cocktail and…something to nibble on while I wait, thanks."

"No, no, no, your _royal highness_." She curtsied and I blinked up at her. "Mm, what? What's the matter…?"

"_You _are gonna mince these mushrooms." She said, pushing my feet back to the ground and placing a sharp, knife-like stone in my hand. I stared at it, and then up at her. "Do—do _what?_"

"_Mince the mushrooms!_" she repeated, beginning to climb up a tree, waving at me. "Hop to it!"

I stared at the mushroom I'd pulled out of the ground. "A little…ridiculous…" I murmured, and then glared up at her as she shouted, "Are you mincing?"

"All right!" I called back. "Relax…" I turned back to the mushroom, turned it upside down, and poked it, frowning. Then I walked over to the tree root in front of me and set it down, placing the stone on the end of it and beginning to cut. This was the most work I'd had to do since…well, since ever! I stopped halfway to run a hand along my forehead, and then finished it, sighing in relief. "One…"

I looked to where Tiana had started a fire under the pumpkin, surprised, and then watched as she came over to me. "Step aside, mister." She said softly, taking the stone from me and flipping it in her fingers. "Watch and learn." She grabbed the mushroom from me, and I smiled as she chopped it into tiny, absolutely perfect pieces, and then stared at her and she handed the stone back. "Oh, all right…um…" I began, and then tensed as Tiana placed one hand on my shoulder and the other on my own hand, maneuvering the stone I was still holding to cut another mushroom, and I gave a quiet laugh.

"There you go," she said, releasing me as I continued to cut the thing, and then I glanced at her as she gathered the mushroom she had chopped. "You know, I—I—I've…" My voice would hardly even work. "I've never done anything like this before."

"Really?" Tiana asked sarcastically, and I laughed slightly. "All right. But…when you live in a castle, everything is done for you, all the time! They dress you, they feed you…drive you—brush your teeth!"

"Aw, poor baby!" Tiana mocked playfully, smiling, and I brushed away the pieces of mushroom too small. "I admit it was a charmed life…until the day my parents cut me off and suddenly I realized…" I slumped forward a bit with my chin resting on my hand, never having thought I'd ever admit what I was about to. "I don't know how to do _anything_."

It was silent for a moment, and then Tiana came up behind me and grabbed the mushroom I had cut. "Well hey, you got the makings of a decent mushroom mincer." She said, flicking a small piece at me.

I brightened up again and looked at her. "Oh, you think so?" I asked, following her to the edge of the pumpkin.

She nodded. "Keep practicing and I just might hire you!"

"Really?"

"No." She giggled, and I smiled. "Oh, come _on_! That was…that was _below _the frog's belt…"

She only smiled at me, and I shook my head, walking back down to the log and leaning against it. I looked up at her, once again having the completely overwhelming sense of how beautiful she was. And…she really _wasn't _as annoying as I'd thought before.

She was actually pretty…amazing.

**A/N: Haha, the spelling/grammer check on my computer went crazy when I was writing Ray's dialogue xD Woo, super long chapter this time! :D Thanks to my first reviewers! Hope you liked it, review if you want to, and see you next chapter!**


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: Ooh, been a while, huh? :P Here's the next chapter, enjoy!**

Chapter Five

_Hilarious. _That was what I had finally decided to describe Ray as. As we ate, he almost couldn't stop making us laugh. He really was a good bug, I'd admit that now; I felt a bit bad about ever thinking otherwise. And believe me, I _had _thought otherwise, the word _insane _maybe popping into my mind a few hundred times.

"Anyone for seconds?" Tiana asked, and I stood from the mushroom I had been sitting on. "That was magnificent!" I exclaimed, handing my little half acorn bowl to her and giving an unwavering smile. "You truly have a gift."

She looked away, appearing almost embarrassed, and then poured some more of the gumbo into my bowl. "Why…thank you."

I took it, but my eyes were on her, and she smiled. We both turned around as Ray squeaked, flying up from where he'd been sitting on a leaf. "There she is…the sweetest firefly in all creation."

Tiana hopped onto a lily-pad, and I followed her. "Evangeline?" she asked, looking around for her.

"I wanna meet this girl!" Louis said, still eating. "Where she at?"

"How you can miss her?" Ray asked, and then flew up a bit higher. "She glowin' right up there in front of ya'll."

I followed his gaze, to the sky, and then frowned as I saw what he was talking about. A star? Evangeline was the evening star? I exchanged a glance with Tiana, a bit confused.

"_Look how she lights up the sky!_" Ray smiled, drawing a heart around the star with a sparkling outline of light. "_My belle Evangeline._"

"Ah hah! That ain't no fi—" Louis began, but stopped as I chucked my bowl at his head. He winced and looked back at me. "Ssh!" I frowned, putting a finger to my lips.

"_So far above me, yet I…_" Ray continued, and I glanced at Tiana again, shrugging at her as she continued to appear confused. "_Know her heart belongs to only me._" Ray drew another heart in light on the tree, and then added an arrow through it, along with the letters E and R.

"_Je t'adore, je t'aime…" _

"I adore you—I love you," I said, turning to Tiana, and then was surprised when she looked at me with a startled frown. "Just translating!" I defended myself, putting my hands out, but then couldn't stop wondering…had I really said that without any meaning at all?

"_Evangeline…_" Ray flew close to the water, singing to the star's reflection. "_You're my queen of the night, so still, so bright_." He kissed the reflection and then flew up again. "_To someone as beautiful as she…_"

I glanced at Tiana, and then stood, taking her hand and lifting her to her feet. "_Could love someone like me…_"

"Oh, no, no I don't dance…" Tiana said, turning away. I caught her and tried to pull her back, only to have her completely jump to a different lily-pad. I stared at her, saddened.

"_Love always finds a way, it's true…_"

Tiana turned back to me. "I've never danced." She admitted, and I sighed understandingly, smiled, and then grabbed the stem of the lily, pulling her back to me. "_And I love you Evangeline._"

"If I can mince, you can dance." I said, and pulled her along with me as I began to sway, hardly even hearing Louis begin to play his trumpet, or noticing Ray light up the flowers beside us. I grabbed her hand and jumped into the water, sinking down and then taking her hand again, spinning her.

"_Love is beautiful…love is wonderful!" _We vaguely heard Ray from above the surface, but were mostly focused on each other, and I grabbed her, pushing off the bottom to jump back into the air, landing on a leaf and sliding back down on a lily-pad. "_Love is everything, do you agree? Mais oui!_"

I gently lifted Tiana back down and slowly twirled her, leaning her back slightly.

"_Look how she lights up the sky…_"

I widened my eyes slightly as I saw the evening star reflect in her eyes, brighter than I'd ever seen anything before, and then smiled longingly, leaning towards her as she placed a hand on my cheek.

"_I love you…Evangeline._"

I closed my eyes, very slowly moving in to kiss her, and then suddenly she murmured, "Ah—" and I blinked, bringing my head back with a small, nervous laugh. She took my hands and removed them from around her and patted them. "Lottie's gettin' herself one heck of a dance partner," she laughed, and I forced another chuckle, my gaze on the ground.

"We, uh…" she began, releasing me. "We best be pushin' on." She hopped onto the other lily-pad, and I held up a finger, though didn't say anything and instead sighed, looking down at my shadow. Suddenly, the form of a hand reached out from nowhere to my shadow's leg, and grabbed it before I could move. "Ah!" I shrieked as it quickly pulled me away and into the trees. "Tiana!"

"Naveen!" I heard her exclaim, and then could hear nothing but the whisper of the shadows. I shouted again and grabbed onto a log, desperately trying pull myself away from the things, but I simply couldn't, and they grabbed onto my other leg, tugging me away with another cry.

Suddenly, a bright flash of light disintegrated the shadow holding me, and I tumbled into the swamp, so frightened I nearly gasped while still underwater. I looked up to see three more lights get rid of the other shadows, and then I resurfaced, breathing hard, looking around and trying to figure out what had just happened. Louis, Ray, and Tiana all gathered behind me, glancing at me and then gasping and looking in front of me.

The shadows that had tried to capture me were nowhere to be found, but now, out of the fog was another shadow, a large one with what looked the same kind of wooden bat one of the hunters had had before. I opened my mouth in fright, and then frowned slightly as out stepped an older woman, laughing and twirling the stick of fire she was holding. "Not bad for a hundred-and-ninety-seven-year-old blind lady!" She said, and then blew out the fire, pointing at us. "Now which one of you naughty dearies been messin' with the Shadow Man?"

I looked at her and smiled nervously. "Uh…"

"You?" She looked in my direction, and I nodded, then felt very stupid as she only stared. Right, she was blind…"Uh, y-yes." I stammered. "On—on _complete _accident, I never—"

"Ah, ah, ah!" She said, waving her finger, and then shook her head. "Voodoo should never be tampered with!"

_I realize this. _I thought with a frown, looking back and Tiana and the others.

"Now, come on and get yourselves over here!" The woman said, gesturing to the dry land she stood on, and the four of us made our way over to it.

"Are you…Mama Odie?" Tiana asked hesitantly, and the woman laughed, waving her hand for us to follow her. I hesitated; it would be really nice if she would answer that question _before _we followed her to wherever she wanted us to go.

The woman must have sensed our uncertainty, and she chuckled again. "Yes, dearies, now come on!"

I glanced at Tiana and smiled slightly at her, and she returned it, hopping off. I did so as well, and after a moment Louis and Ray followed.

It turned out the place Mama Odie lived (which was very strange…) wasn't more than a minute walk from where we had been. It was a boat…halfway up a very large tree. Yes, I told you it was strange! But she _did _apparently have magic, so why not live in the most unsubtle place in the Bayou? It wasn't like anyone was going to say anything about it.

She led us up the staircase on the side of the tree, and then into the boat/house/…whatever it was.

"We're so glad we found you, Mama Odie!" Tiana began. "Ray and Louis here have been telling us all about you—"

The woman threw the stick that had been on fire to the side, not even seeming like she was listening.

"And we've been traveling quite a long way," Tiana continued. "And you can't even imagine what we've been through, and we—" She paused and stared off to the side, disgusted, and I followed her gaze to two jars on top of each other, one containing two eyeballs and the other teeth, which moved as if smiling at us.

Tiana brushed it off and went on, while I continued to stare at the thing, not sure what to think. "And—and we heard that you—"

"_Juju!_" Mama Odie called, and a snake suddenly appeared, hanging down from the ceiling. "Come over here, you bad boy…"

Tiana merely sighed, exasperated, as the snake rubbed up against the woman—and even _kissed _her—but I backed up a bit and unknowingly placed my hands up almost protectively, suddenly afraid as I remembered the snakes back at Dr. Facilier's emporium. _Great, _I thought, sighing in irritation at the apparent fear I now had. But this snake didn't look anything like the other two; it seemed okay. Or at least, it hadn't tied me down yet, for which I was grateful.

Mama Odie straightened Juju and used it as a walking stick, accidentally smacking it into a bell. "Good to see you again, Ray! How's your Grandmama?"

"Oh she fine!" Ray chuckled. "Got in a little trouble for flashing the neighbors again."

"Ooh, I like the gal's spunk!" Mama Odie laughed, and then sat down. I slowly followed Tiana, though I couldn't relax until Juju had pushed the footrest closer, and then retreated under the chair. "Mama Odie," Tiana began, and with a sigh I hopped up onto the arm rest as she did. "We don't wanna take up too much of your time—"

"Ya'll want some candy?" She interrupted, holding out her hand, which held several pieces of what _could _have been candy, but didn't very much resemble any I'd ever seen. "Uh…" I rubbed my shoulder and looked up at her. "Not really, no."

"No…no thank you," Tiana agreed politely.

"Well now, that's too bad!" Mama Odie said, and rubbed off a piece on her shirt. "This here's a special candy."

"Eh…?" I glanced at Tiana as she popped it into her mouth. "Woulda turned ya'll human!" she continued, and I felt like someone had just punched me. "Oh, no, no, no, no! Please!" I sputtered desperately, putting my hands on my head, and then frowned as she began laughing. "I'm just messin' with ya'll!"

I glanced at Tiana and smiled as she said, "How on earth did you know that we wanted to turn back—"

We looked back at Mama Odie as she let out a snore, realizing she was asleep. I hadn't even known falling asleep that fast was _possible_. I leaned towards her, poking her glasses. "Um…Mama Odie?"

"Juju!" She suddenly jolted awake, and I exclaimed in surprise as she got up, causing me to fall onto the seat. "Why didn't you tell me my gumbo was burnin'?" She demanded, rushing over to a giant tub of the soup-like stuff. I glanced at Tiana as she landed next to me, and then we both hopped over to her, jumping onto the side of the tub.

"I can't believe this…I gotta do everything around here…" she was muttering, and Tiana held out a hand. "Mama Odie, if you could just—"

"Taste it!" Mama Odie said, placing some of the gumbo in Tiana's mouth. "Well?"

Tiana swallowed and thought for a moment. "Hit it hard with a couple a shots of Tabasco and it's the bee's knees. Now, can we—"

"_Juju!_" She shouted, and the snake suddenly popped up with a bottle of the sauce, dropping some into it and then disappearing again. Mama Odie tasted it and then laughed, joyfully dancing for a moment. "That's got some zing to it! That's just what it needed." She smiled at Tiana and then leaned close to us. "Now, ya'll figure out what _you _need?"

"It's just like you said, Mama Odie. We need to be human again." Tiana said, and I nodded.

"_Hah!_" Mama Odie shouted, leaning so close to Tiana that just jumped back, and I grunted as she bumped into me, nearly falling into the gumbo. I grabbed her and helped her back onto the side, my arm around her.

"Ya'll ain't got the sense you was born with!" the woman continued. "Ya'll _want _to be human; but you're _blind _to what you need!"

"What we want, what we need…it is all the same thing, yes?" I asked, and then she hit me with the stirring stick. "Ow!"

"It's the same thing _no!_" Mama Odie said, and I placed a hand on my head. _Why _did everyone enjoy hitting me? She laughed and moved to the center of the room. "You listen to your mama, now!"

"_Don't matter what you look like, don't matter what you wear._" She sang, using Juju as a 'scarf' and its tail as 'rings'. "_How many rings you got on your fingers, we don't care!_"

"_No, we don't care!_" A bunch of spoon birds echoed, appearing on the top of the house.

Mama Odie moved towards Louis, magically conjuring up a stick in her hand like she'd had in the swamp before. "_Don't matter where you come from, don't even matter where you are!_" She turned to Juju and turned him into what she was singing as she said it. "_A dog, a pig, a cow, a goat, we had 'em all in here!_"

"_We had 'em all in here!" _The birds sang, dancing around with her as she turned the Juju back to a snake.

"_And they all knew what they wanted, what they wanted me to do!_" She continued, looking at us. "_I told 'em what they needed, just like I be tellin' you!_" She began rummaging through a chest, tossing things out.

"_You gotta dig a little deeper! Find out who you are!" _

Louis caught a tambourine, and Ray caught a bottle cap.

"_You gotta dig a little deeper, it really ain't that far!_" She grabbed an oyster and opened it in front of the two of us, revealing a very pretty pearl. Although, as we looked at it, I saw something far more beautiful. "_When you find out who ya are, you find out what you need._"

Tiana backed up slightly and turned around, noticing me staring at her, and then I widened my smile nervously, moving away slightly and then jumping down to the ground.

"_Blue skies and sunshine, are guaranteed! You gotta dig! You gotta dig!" _She continued, and I began joyfully dancing. "_Prince Froggy was a rich little boy, you wanna be rich again?_"

I turned around and nodded at her. "_That ain't gonna make you happy, did it make you happy then?_"

I shrugged, and then jerked back as she shouted, "No!" She began dumping gold coins on me, and I lifted my hands up, laughing. "_Money ain't got no soul, money ain't got no heart!_"

The coins piled up, although I suddenly began panicking as I realized I couldn't move or breathe as it buried me.

"_All you need's a little self control—_" Mama Odie sang, grabbing me from the coins and pointing at me. "_Make yourself a brand new start! You gotta dig a little deeper!_" She flung herself across the room, landing and setting me on a box. "_You don't have far to go! You gotta dig a little deeper!_"

She gestured towards the other side of the room, and I looked to see Tiana dancing. I stared at her in awe, dropping the coin I'd still been holding. For someone who had just told me she had never danced before, she was actually good at it, and I smiled longingly at her. "_Tell the people Mama told you so! Can't tell you what you'll find, but maybe love will grant you peace of mind, dig a little deeper and you'll know._" Mama Odie continued, poking my chest and then went over to Tiana. "Miss Froggy?" She began.

"Ma'am?"

"Might I have a word?"

"Yes ma'am," Tiana answered, looking up at her as she picked her up and held her in her palm over the tub of gumbo. "You's a hard one, that's what I heard…" Mama Odie continued, and I watched as both of them looked into the tub, though couldn't see what they were staring at. "_You're daddy was a lovin' man, family through and through. You your daddy's daughter, what he had in him, you've got in you!_" She poked Tiana and then walked across a giant hole in the floor, Juju acting as a boardwalk for her. "_You gotta dig a little deeper, for you it's gonna be tough!_"

She stepped onto a little platform, and Juju began cranking a wheel to make it raise. "_You gotta dig a little deeper; you ain't dug near far enough!_"

"_Dig down deep inside yourself, you'll find out what you need!_" I stared up at them—specifically Tiana—and then followed Louis to an alternate way up. "_Blue skies and sunshine, guaranteed!_"

"Open up the windows! Let in the light, dearies!" Mama Odie shouted, and the still-singing spoon birds opened up a curtain of moss, the sunlight reflecting off a million bottles hanging from the tree branches nearly blinding.

"_Blue skies and sunshine, blue skies and sunshine…_" Mama Odie picked up Tiana and placed her on top of her head and I smiled up at her in awe as she sung absolutely amazingly. "_Blue skies and sunshine!_"

"_Are guaranteed!_" Mama Odie finished with a pose, as did the choir of birds. "Well now, Miss Froggy?" she began, raising a hand. "Do you understand what you need now, child?"

"Yes!" Tiana nodded confidently. "I do, Mama Odie! I need to dig a little deeper, and work even _harder _to get my restaurant!" She finished, placing her hands on her hips.

"Oh…" Mama Odie and all the birds sighed hopelessly, and she tipped over so far as she placed a hand on her forehead that Tiana fell off her onto the branch. "All right, ya'll," I heard Ray begin behind me. "One more time! It don't matter what you look like, it don't…nobody gonna sing with Ray…? Okay."

I smiled at Mama Odie, jumping behind her to be next to Tiana as she moved. "Well, if ya'll set on being human…there's only _one_ way."

She led us back downstairs to the tub of gumbo. What was it with this lady and this stuff? But as she stirred it, it started to shine brightly. "Gumbo, gumbo, in the pot; we need a princess—_what you got?_"

Tiana and I watched from Mama Odie's shoulder as the gumbo formed into an image of a blonde girl sleeping. "_Lottie?_" I glanced at Tiana as she spoke. "But…she's not a princess—"

"Hush up and look at the gumbo." Mama Odie frowned, and both of us did as an older fat man, who I assumed was her father, came in dressed in a very king like suit, holding a pillow with a tiara on it. "Ta da!" His voice vaguely echoed, and then Lottie sat up and screamed in delight.

"That's right…" Tiana murmured as Lottie's father placed the tiara on her head. "Big Daddy's king of the Mardi Gras parade…so that makes Lottie…a princess!"

"Does that count?" I asked doubtfully, looking at Mama Odie.

"Yes, it does!" She replied, then waved a finger. "But only till midnight, when Mardi Gras is over."

"Faldi faldonza!" I breathed, placing a hand on my head, and then Mama Odie poked my chest twice. "Hop along! You only got till then to get that princess to kiss ya!" She spun the gumbo into a different, shadowy image, of me getting kissed by Lottie and then both me and Tiana turning human again. "Once she does—boom! Ya both turn human!"

She picked us up and set us on the floor, and I glanced at the ground. Sunlight from outside poured onto it. "Midnight!" I repeated, and then glanced at Tiana. "Well that doesn't give us much time at all!" she said, and I followed her as she jumped off outside.

Louis stayed back and talked for a moment (about what I guess must have been turning him human) before Mama Odie attempted to shove him out the door. "There's a lot of river between here and New Orleans, ya'll better get to swimming!"

"Wait!" Louis said, catching himself in the door way, and we looked back at him.

"I got a better idea."

**A/N: FINALLY. I got to do my two very favorite songs in the movie! Well, I love them all, but Ray's and Mama Odie's seem to be the most touching :) Hope you liked it, review if you want, and see you next chapter! :D **


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter Six

"Naveen, Tiana, wake up! We're here!"

"…What?" I murmured, blinking, confused at what Louis had just said. We were already in New Orleans? How long had I been sleeping? I _could _hear music, but it seemed a little ridiculous we'd have gotten there so quickly—the sun was just now beginning to set. But as I sat up and rubbed my eyes, I saw he hadn't been talking about New Orleans; he'd been talking about our ride there!

"Oh, Louis!" I heard Tiana cry excitedly, and I looked at her as she straightened up. "A riverboat; it's perfect!" She turned to me and grabbed my hand, her eyes wide with hope. "We're gonna make it!" she exclaimed, and I smiled in relief. Although we did still have a lot to do, I was pretty sure she was going to be right.

"Okay," Louis said, glancing back at us as we neared the boat. "I'll check to be sure there ain't anyone there." He lowered his head for us to jump onto the boat, behind some boxes, and I instantly helped Tiana up, smiling at her. She smiled as well, and then Louis whistled to signal it was clear. He hauled himself over the side and then fell heavily to the deck before he started half dancing to the beat of the music, pulling himself up, and then we all froze as Tiana gasped, looking at the curtain a little ways away that had the shadows of what looked to be people with—

"They got guns!" Louis exclaimed, and Tiana and I rushed behind the nearest pipe as Ray flew into it. Louis tried to fit, but obviously couldn't, and instead boxed himself up in fear.

But it hadn't been hunters—only jazz players! "Man," the one in the lion costume said, looking at Louis. "That is one killa-dilla costume!"

"Hey, gator," another asked, "can you blow that horn?"

Louis hesitated for only the briefest moments before he played a little, and the three laughed. "That was real! Come on, sit here with us, we playin' Mardi Gras!"

Louis sighed in relief and then exclaimed in delight, playing his horn as he followed them.

I watched him go, and then suddenly realized I had been clutching Tiana to me the entire time, and she looked at me. We both pulled away awkwardly as Ray flew up in front of us. "We can't miss this!" he laughed. "Little Louis is finally gon' play with the big boys!"

He flew off, and Tiana followed him as I rubbed my arm, unsure and not moving.

"Naveen?" Tiana asked, looking back at me. "You comin'?"

"Oh!" I chuckled, leaning against the pipe and waving slightly at her. "I'll—I'll catch up with you later."

She smiled at me for a moment longer—and I wished that moment could have lasted forever—before she hopped off and down the hallway.

I smiled as she went, and then glanced down with a silent gasp. Mardi Gras beads and other junk had been thrown all around the deck, and right at my feet was a bracelet and some metal thing, and I picked both of them up in my hand, already forming what I was going to make with them in my mind.

I hid the two objects behind the pipe (although I wasn't sure who I thought was going to take them) and went off to look for something to put the ring in. I obviously knew I wasn't going to find a perfect box or something like I would have had I been human, but it just needed to look nice. Anything would work; a clam shell, an oyster—a walnut?

I paused at the edge of the hallway I was going down, right next to a giant bag of the things. _Well, _I thought as I leapt up to grab one, _that worked out nicely._ But…how was I going to crack it open? It was almost bigger than my hand, and even in my regular form I'd had trouble opening them without someone or something doing it for me.

I jumped down to the deck again and then tried to crack it on the ground, banging it several times against it and then frowning when it did absolutely nothing to it. Not even a dent! I thought for a moment and then glanced at the wall. Weighing the walnut in my hand for a minute, I hesitated, and then chucked it towards it. It bounced back and instantly slammed into me, knocking me back into the wall I'd been standing in front of. I slid down it with a groan, placing a hand on my head and scowling at the thing…and then happened to look over to the left, staring at an almost perfectly halved shell next to me. Had that been there the whole time?

I sighed and stood, annoyed, grabbing the shell and then kicking the one I'd tried to crack away from me. "Ow!" I exclaimed, jerking back as it only moved about two feet, and then clenched my teeth in anger, storming down the hall. I grabbed the two things I'd hid before and looked around for a safe place to go where no one—specifically Tiana—would be able to see me.

Hooking the twisted metal onto the bracelet and putting it around my neck so I had a free hand, I managed to hop up to the roof of where I'd been, looking out into the dying sunlight. I had to work fast or nothing would be completed in time! I had other things I wanted to do! I glanced to the side of me and saw a little piece of dark blue fabric, smiling and placing it inside the shell. _I wonder what Tiana's favorite color is…_

It took me maybe ten minutes to complete the ring, using the shiny bead off the bracelet that was white and hooking it onto the metal circle I had created, making sure it wouldn't fall off before I twisted the bottom of the metal, setting it on the fabric and closing the walnut with a sigh. I glanced up at the sky, a star catching my eye, and murmured, "Oh, Evangeline. Why can't I just look Tiana in the eye and say…I will do whatever it takes to make all your dreams come true, because…" I got down on one knee and opened the walnut for practice. "Because I love you."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, Cap'n!" Ray's voice startled me, and I looked to see him literally turning red with anger. "You makin' goo-goo eyes at _my _girl?"

I widened my eyes as he rushed over to me and starting punching my hand. He thought I was—? "No, no, wait, no—"

"I'm gonna make some shoes outta you…" Ray continued to threaten, and I pushed him back with a single finger. "No, no, Ray! I am not in love with Evangeline, I am in love with Tiana!"

I winced as he bit my finger, and then stopped and turned yellow again, flying up into the air, grinning insanely. "Hoo! I knew it, I knew it, I knew it!"

"I can no longer marry Miss Charlotte La Bouff." I said, hardly hearing Ray continue to babble on. "I will find another way for Tiana to get her restaurant…" I thought for a moment. "I will get a job! Maybe two…maybe three!"

"I can't wait to tell cher—" Ray began to fly off after making a heart out of light, but I grabbed his wings before he could, pulling him back to me. "No, no, no, _I _must tell her," I said, placing a hand on my chest. "Alone."

"Right," Ray nodded, and then laughed. "You rascal!"

I released him and said, "I have one more thing to do—I will see you!" I waved, grabbing the walnut and hopping onto the very top of the riverboat, making sure I wasn't seen by the captain in the control room. I looked around, set the shell down, and laughed to myself. The spot, it was wonderful! It overlooked the water, directly under the moon. Tiana would love it—or at least, I hoped she would.

I made a list in my head and then hopped down again, ready to gather the things I needed. This night had to be perfect.

Finally, I had finished, and I stepped back, inspecting the work I had done. A bottle of champagne in a bucket, which had been almost impossible for me to get up here, a flower, three teacups I had turned upside down for chairs and a table, a candle, and a little tray of fruits and vegetables I had cut up. I went over to the candle and moved the match I had been holding across the ground quickly, lighting the candle and then blowing the little piece of wood out. "Perfect." I murmured, grinning, and then looked up as a voice suddenly said, "Oh, this is real nice here."

Confused, I saw no one at first, and then finally realized there was a butterfly above me, so dark it almost blended in with the sky. "Uh…hello," I said, and he went to hover over the table. "You got someone special you doin' this for?"

"Yes," I nodded, and he suddenly was right in front of me. I almost jerked back as he landed on me, but looked down as I realized what he was trying to do—he was trying to be a bow tie for me! "Hah," I laughed, and then I stepped back. "I must go get her,"

He fluttered off, and I jumped down to the deck to find Tiana. It took me a while, but I finally spotted her looking out at the water from the back of the boat, and I stopped for a moment, watching her, once again nearly overwhelmed by how beautiful she looked. Something about light and the way it shined down on her…it was amazing.

I took another step towards her and cleared my throat, my hands behind my back as she turned quickly to me. "Naveen," she smiled, "you scared me."

"Sorry," I apologized, and she turned back to the water, which was one big reflection of the full moon. "Beautiful, isn't it?"

"Yes." I said, but wasn't looking at the water.

She glanced up at me and then narrowed her eyes. "What?"

"Come," I held my hand out. "There is something you must see."

Tiana hesitatingly took it, and I lifted her up. "What is it?"

"You will find out," I said simply, and led her to the way I'd gotten up to the top of the boat. She was silent until we had almost reached the platform, and finally she laughed softly. "Where are you taking me?"

I took her hand again and helped her up. "Oh, I just…wanted to show you something to celebrate our last night together as frogs." I shrugged, and as she saw what I had done, she gasped and smiled in delight, standing up as I backed up, and the butterfly landed on me once again.

"Oh…" Tiana murmured. "All my years…no one's ever done anything like this for me." She turned to look at me and giggled.

I glanced down at the butterfly and laughed nervously. "Oh, it—it is too much, isn't it?" I cleared my throat and then waved my hand briefly. "Thank you, bow."

The butterfly shrugged and flew off. "I thought it was a nice touch."

I went over to Tiana and placed a hand on her shoulder. "Pretend you did not see that," I said as she giggled again, and I led her over to the table. "Please, please…sit down." I said, and then reached out to push in her chair for her, grabbing the tray and setting it down. "What's this?" she asked, and I opened it. "You minced!"

"I did!" I laughed as she did, sitting down and looking dreamily at her. "You have had quite an influence on me, which is amazing because I have dated _thousands _of woman, and—" I stopped abruptly as Tiana frowned, realizing I had said the wrong this, but was so nervous that as I tried to speak again, I could barely form the words. "Uh—no, like…two, three—just, other woman!" I reached down, trying to grab the shell but couldn't find it.

"A-and anyway, listen—" I continued, noticing she was staring at me very strangely. "You could not be more different, you know, you are—you are practically one of the guys!" I laughed awkwardly as I finally grabbed the shell, and then placed my hand up as Tiana frowned again. Why couldn't I say the right thing? "No, no, no! You are not a guy! Let me begin again, uh—" I leaned on the table, which then half tipped over, causing me to fall along with all the food that landed on top of me.

"Hah, I am not myself tonight…" I tried, and then noticed the walnut out in the open. "Tiana!" I shouted, grabbing it and hoping she hadn't seen it. "Sorry, that was loud," I said, finally looking away in embarrassment, and then stood, sitting on the edge of the table with a sigh. "This is a disaster…"

"No," Tiana giggled, removing a leaf that had apparently been stuck to my head. "It's cute."

I smiled at her and then glanced down at the shell, taking a breath and beginning to get down on one knee. "Tiana…I—"

She hadn't been looking at me anyway, and gasped suddenly, rushing over to sit on the side of the boat, which was now passing several buildings. "There it is!"

I sighed, and then went to sit next to her. "Your restaurant?"

"Oh, can't you just picture it?" she said excitedly. "All lit up like the fourth of July!"

I laughed. "Yes, jazz pouring out of every window!" I clasped my hands together to make a trumpet sound and then scooted closer to her, bringing the walnut as well.

"It should be elegant," she said.

"But you gotta keep it loose, though; gotta let it swing." I said, placing an arm around her.

She giggled. "You know a good ukulele player?"

"Really?" I grinned. "Re—you let me perform?"

She placed a hand on my leg. "I'll talk to the owner…" She paused and then looked at me. "Owner says 'yes'!"

"Achedanza!" I laughed.

"Folks are gonna be comin' together from all walks of life, just to get a taste of our food." She continued, leaning against me.

"_Our_ food?" I repeated softly, glancing down and opening the shell.

"Huh?" Tiana lifted herself up, and I pushed back the walnut as she shook her head. "Oh, no, no, my—my daddy. He always wanted to open this restaurant…he died before he could see it happen."

She took my hand. "But tomorrow," she went on. "with your help…our dream is finally comin' true."

My smile faded. "Tomorrow?"

"If I don't turn the money in first thing tomorrow…" She looked off sadly towards the building again. "I lose this place forever."

I hesitated for a moment, and then took a deep breath. "Tiana, I love…"

She looked at me with a smile, and yet I simply couldn't say it, closing the shell. "…The way you…light up when you talk about your dream. A dream that—it is so beautiful, I…" I took her hand. "I promise, I will do whatever it takes to make it come true." I smiled, and then gasped silently as the riverboat's horn blew, and the captain called out, "Port of New Orleans! All ashore!"

I sighed and then patted her hand. "I'll uh…I'll go round up the boys." I stood, taking the walnut with me, and slowly walked off, jumping down to right above where the captain's window was, looking out at the water and then at the walnut in my hand. What was I supposed to do with it now?

I looked out, contemplating simply tossing it into the water, when suddenly, something grabbed me around the waist, and I dropped it anyway in surprise, managing to look back to see a shadow holding my own. I struggled and opened my mouth to cry out, but suddenly felt it forced closed, and I was whisked off the boat.

I fought the entire time the shadows had me in their grip, but I simply couldn't get free. And Mama Odie wasn't there to destroy them with fire this time. Finally I felt my mouth released, and I shouted, "Help!" But who exactly did I expect to help me?

The shadow holding me let me hit the side of the chimney we suddenly were next to, and I went silent for a moment, stunned, before they dragged me down, putting out the fire before the dragged me into the room. "Eh—ah!" I grunted as they dangled me in the air for a moment and then threw me—right into Dr. Facilier's hat. He jerked me up and caught me in his hand, holding me so tight I could hardly breathe.

"We are back in business, boys!" The Shadow Man cackled, waving me like a prize to the shadow demons. Then he placed his hat back on his head and turned around, beginning to walk forward.

"Get your filthy hands off me!" I demanded, struggling desperately, and he ignored me, grabbing my hand and holding it out as Lawrence, in his normal form, came at me with the same talisman as before. "L-Lawrence!" I tried, my voice hoarse, but he only chuckled and brought the necklace towards me. "Oh now, hold still, your _Eminence_…"

I shouted loudly in both anger and pain as the talisman once again drew blood from my finger, continuing to fight against the grip I was in until I finally came to terms with the fact that I wasn't going to get free, and I cried out again. It felt like the thing was trying to bite my finger _off _instead of just pricking it. I squirmed again, this time trying to make the pain stop, but still had no success. Why…why was everything so fuzzy all of a sudden…?

What seemed like an eternity later, Lawrence finally pulled back the talisman, completely red again, and then placed it around his neck, morphing back into a copy of me. I slumped in the Shadow Man's hand, weakened and struggling to focus.

"Wait outside," Dr. Facilier ordered, and Lawrence pulled on a red coat and went out the door. I hit the side of the Shadow Man's hand as hard as I could manage (which, at the moment, wasn't hard at all) hoping for him to drop me, but he only scowled at me and swung me around, grabbing a box and throwing me into it. "Let's see you get out of that, Prince." He growled, and as I tried to stand up, he slammed the lid closed on me.

I hadn't realized I'd fainted until I woke up, my head aching terribly from the force the top had come down on me with. "Ugh…" I groaned, finally gathering the strength to raise myself up and go over to the keyhole, peering out to find I was on…a Mardi Gras float? What the heck were these guys planning to do?

And then I gasped as I realized the person standing next to the box was Lawrence, and I bent down to look out a bit more, ignoring whoever was talking. Who was that standing next to him, in the pink dress?

"Charlotte?" I murmured, confused, and then I allowed myself to tune in the words being spoken, and I gasped.

"…If anyone objects to the union of these two beings…"

I scowled. Married? They were getting _married? _

"…speak now or forever hold your peace."

I pounded on the inside of the box as hard as I could, trying to open it. "Me! _Me!_ I object!"

I sighed in anger and shot my tongue out through the keyhole, trying to bring myself closer to Lawrence, not sure what I planned to do once I was. It seemed to be working for a moment—until he apparently saw me and stomped onto my tongue. "Gah!" I exclaimed, placing my hands over my mouth as my tongue retracted.

Suddenly, Ray appeared, looking in through the hole. "Is that you, Cap'n?"

"Ray!" I shouted, thinking I'd never been so happy to hear anyone's voice in my life. "Get me out of this box!"

"I can't hear you, I'mma get you out this box!"

I stepped back as he folded his antennas and then turned upside down to match the shape of the keyhole, flying in and finally opening it just as I heard the man begin to say, "I now pronounce you man and—"

I didn't allow him to finish, jumping onto Lawrence and grabbing the talisman, struggling to yank it off his neck and expose him but failing, instead causing both of us to fall off the float and tumble down to the ground. I couldn't move for a moment, dazed, and then heard Lawrence exclaim and roughly grab me, getting to his feet.

"Goodness gracious, are you all right?" Charlotte called from the top of the float, and Lawrence held up a finger, rushing into the building nearest to us. "I just need a moment to compose myself, dear!"

"Cheese and crackers!"

"…Lawrence!" I groaned as he slammed the door behind him, blinking up at the man. "Why are you doing this?"

"It's payback," he replied, holding onto me with both hands now and leaning menacingly towards me. "for all those years of…_humiliation._"

Suddenly, Dr. Facilier appeared from the darkened doorway beside us. "_Get _your royal rump back onto that wedding cake and finish this deal!"

I bulged out my throat suddenly, causing Lawrence to release me, and I grabbed the talisman, pulling it off of Lawrence's neck, and he reverted back to his usual self. "No!" he shouted, and tried to grab the thing, which I struggled to keep away from him.

"What's he doin'—stop him!" The Shadow Man shouted, and I noticed Ray suddenly pop up. _Please catch this! _I silently begged, and then tossed the talisman from my foot with all my strength.

Ray did catch it, although he fell due to how heavy it was, then struggled to fit both himself and the talisman under the door. Dr. Facilier rushed after him, obviously panicked about losing the thing, but hadn't needed to worry at all. In fact, he hadn't needed to _rush_.

The talisman was just a little too large to fit through the crack, and even as Ray yanked on it, it didn't budge. Dr. Facilier chuckled and grabbed it, jerking Ray back into the room and swatting him to the floor as he attempted to pull the necklace away. Then, his foot hovering above the firefly, he stepped down.

"_No!_"

**A/N: Yup...Thus begins the alternate ending :P I honestly haven't a clue why, but it's getting really hard for me to write this story, so I MIGHT not update for just a little while, but I'm determined to finish this! I had SO many cool ideas for where I was going with it...Dx Ah well, hope you liked it, and see you next update! **


End file.
